It’s Written All Over Her Face

Kings Of Convenience “I’d Rather Dance With You” – On his recent DJ Kicks mix cd, Erlend Oye covered The Smiths’ “There Is A Light That Never Goes Out,” but on this Kings Of Convenience track he goes all the way and writes his own damned version of the song without all of the doomed-romantic lyrical baggage. Perhaps I am being a bit unfair, but there is more than a passing resemblence here; and hey, if you’re going to rewrite a Smiths song, you may as well do the very best one of them all. This is more than just a Morrissey homage, of course – there’s bits of The Cure, the Psychedelic Furs, Echo & The Bunnymen, and just about every other romantic British alt-rock band in the mix. Much like the Har Mar Superstar song from last week, this seems as though it was deliberately written and produced in accordance with a dead tradition. This goes beyond retro pop – it’s more fetishistic, like building a highly detailed miniature replica of an old boat. Oye’s attention to detail, along with his gift for melody and low-key vocal phrasing keep this song from being just another tired retread. This is actually good enough that it would’ve probably been a huge 120 Minutes hit if it had only been released in 1988. (Click here to buy it from Amazon.)

The Embassy “Flipside Of A Memory” – There’s a good chance that this could’ve been somewhat popular in the late 80s as well, though it is not quite as much of a period piece as the Oye composition. I’m not sure whether or not the lead guitar line in this tune is intentionally paraphrasing Nirvana’s “Come As You Are.” Given that both songs touch on the subject of memory, I’d prefer to believe that it’s a clever and catchy reference, but it could just as well be a lucky coincidence. (Click here to buy it directly from the band.)